How To Kickstart A Moped

Fortunately, you won’t need to kickstart Lucky Pro scooters, but you need to do that to a moped sometimes. First of all, make sure the engine is still working before you attempt kickstarting it. When kickstarting a moped, stay left of it and push the lever fast with your foot. Read the whole guide for more details.

Kick-starting a dead moped

Recently in the United States mopeds have become more and more popular, and that is because they can be a means of transportation that are fuel-efficient, and they’re also light. That makes them ideal for commuters or for those looking for alternative vehicles to beat the traffic with.

Nowadays mopeds have electric starters, and many electronic components to make them easier to use and start. But these components can fail, especially the battery which can get drained, and that will leave you with a scooter that’s not running anymore or simply won’t start.

So you’ll need to try and kickstart your moped if that happens to you. There are some easy steps to follow in order to achieve that. The first of them is to stand on the left side of the moped because there’s where the manual starter usually is.

Sitting on the left side of the vehicle, using your foot, pull the left part of the center stand of the moped until it touches the ground. Then, hold the handlebars really well on both sides and pull the moped backward so that you lift it on the center stand.

After you do that, you need to find the kick-start lever which should be on the left of the transmission case. Unfold it so that the peg where you need to place your foot is out. Don’t forget to turn the ignition key to the “ON” position after that so the moped can actually start. You will have to hold both handlebars again, this time keeping your hand away from the brake on the left handlebar.

With your right foot push on the kick-starter peg and do that with a swift, fast motion, but don’t be too forceful. You also need to allow the lever to come back to its initial position after you pushed it. The engine will probably not start from your first try, but do that again and again until it starts.

Don’t forget that you shouldn’t be pressing on the brake, because most mopeds have a mechanism which doesn’t allow the engine to start if the brake is activated.

What if kick-starting doesn’t work?

If your kick-starting mechanism won’t make the engine start, or if it’s broken for some reason, you need to find the battery. Because most mopeds are made in Asian countries, they also have the battery placed in the same place, under the footrest area. However, sometimes you can find the battery under the seat and close to the fuel tank, so look there as well.

The footrest area usually has a rubber mat on it, so lift it up to find the battery which should be found under the plastic cover. You will need to remove the screws and use a Phillips head screwdriver for that. Take the cover off to expose the battery. You should see the battery terminals, each of them marked accordingly.

The black terminal is the negative one and the red is the positive one. To start your moped by kickstarting the battery you will need a jump pack. Get the pack and connect the respective terminals to the ones on the battery, positive to positive and negative to negative. Before you start everything don’t forget to set the jump pack to the 12-volt operation setting.

Start the jump pack, let go of the left brake lever and they start pressing the starter button. This should engage the electric starter on the moped. Do that until the engine starts to work. Once that is tone, turn the jump pack off.

After that remove the positive and negative cables, put the plastic cover over the battery back on and don’t forget to put the screws back as well with the help of the Phillips head screwdriver. Also, put the rubber mat back on there.

Jump-starting without a jamp pack

You don’t always have a jump pack at your disposal so you have to improvise a bit in those situations. Fortunately, you can always use another vehicle to provide power to the moped’s battery. To do that you’ll need to follow some easy steps, first of which is to turn the vehicle providing the power off.

If it’s a car, open its hood and find the battery. Connect the cables correctly, with the positive cable to the car’s positive battery post, and the negative cable to its corresponding post. Next connect the cables to their respective positions on the scooter’s battery as well, just as you would when using a jump pack.

Press the handbrake fast and hold it and at the same time press the moped’s starter button. This should cause the engine to start, and if it doesn’t from the first attempt, try it until it works. Once the engine starts, remove the jumper cables from your battery. Always avoid keeping the jumper cables connected to the battery more than necessary because this could damage it.

Reasons why your moped might not start

Your moped won’t start if it doesn’t have enough power most of the times, but that’s not the only reason why it’s possible that it isn’t working. When you use the moped for a long time, after a while you can have issues with the starter. To check if that’s the case, first, have a look if the moped has battery power.

If it has, the lights should turn on when you turn on the key. But when you do that and the starter doesn’t engage it’s either the starter’s fault or it could be because of the starter switch. But how do you recognize this problem?

First of all, try to start the moped manually using the star button that can be found on the handlebars. Turn the key and engage that button and if the moped doesn’t give any signs it means the problem is an electrical one. So the problem can be either with the button, the wires that connect everything together or the starter relay.

Then there is the second option when you press the button and the starter engages but the engine is still stopped. If this happens the issue is with the fuel system or with the ignition one. You will often find that the issue is with the engine itself, either because of a bad spark plug, a wire, or a problem with the fuel system.

If you need to check the fuel system, you will have to look at the fuel lines going from the fuel tank to the pump. That can be a bit tricky, as you also need to have a look at the carburetor, and for that, you have to know your way around the moped parts.

You will have to look for any possible leaks and if you notice them, replace the hoses where they occur with some new ones. The fuel filter could also not work properly because it may be blocked with debris or small particles that have accumulated over time clogging it. Sometimes it’s better if you look at the filter first because that’s a major reason why engines won’t start.

Especially if you’re using your moped on dirt roads, the fuel system will get clogged fast. But otherwise, the other major thing that could prevent your engine from starting is the fact that it may not be getting the right spark. As you might expect, a problem with the spark plug will cause this, but the wires or ignition coil could have a role too.

You should only try to solve an electrical problem if you’re an expert in the domain. Otherwise, it’s best if you get your moped to service as solving this kind of problem is difficult, and even worse it can cause serious injuries.

If your moped doesn’t start that can also be due to a bad fuse, or it may have problems with the starter motor. So you’ll have to check those as well, and you have to look at the fuses that are next to the relay. If the fuses are good, the starter is the issue. Unfortunately, you will have to replace it, as that’s the only solution.